Alcatel-Lucent to generate cash by licensing its patents

Like Kodak, Alcatel-Lucent, France’s largest telecommunications equipment maker is hoping to generate 500 million euros to 1 billion euros in revenue in 2012 by licensing some of the 29,000 patents it owns, four analysts told www.businessweek.com. IP officers looking for ways to expand on patent revenue might want to consider a similar tactic.

“Licensing is a hot trend in the tech sector right now, but if these numbers turn out to be true, then maybe Alcatel should stop everything else and do only licensing, “Thomas Langer of WestLB Equity Markets in Dusseldorf, Germany told www.businessweek.com.

Alcatel does not plan to sell its patent portfolio, which includes voice-recognition and videoconferencing technology, Chief Executive Officer Ben Verwaayen told Business Week.. “By syndicating the patent portfolio, we found a creative way to extract value without weakening ownership.”